SINGAPORE: The one-year trial of free MRT rides for early birds has been running for eight months, and the Land Transport Authority said there has been a 6 to 7 per cent shift in commuters to the pre-peak hours.

Free travel is available on the MRT for all commuters who tap out before 7.45am at 18 MRT stations in the city on weekdays.

The trial started in June last year.

Channel NewsAsia understands more measures to encourage early birds may be introduced in future.

Experts said these measures could be targeted at employers to encourage them to adjust working hours or make them more flexible.

Park Byung Joon, head of urban transport management programme at SIM University, said: “Since (the trial has been in place for) many months… I don’t think that people will change their behaviour now and for those people who (wish to) change their behaviour to take advantage of free travel, I believe they have already done so.”

Prof Lee Der Horng, from National University of Singapore’s Department of Environmental and Civil Engineering, said: “Perhaps in the next wave, to further encourage people to respond to this free travel programme, we can be more focused on those office buildings around the MRT stations, to get the employers to, and make known to them the benefit that could be brought to them.”